Faded Smile
by ShadowMellow
Summary: AU - Instead of Aika dying, it was Mahiro that lied in his own blood at the night of the 23rd. Now, Eight months later, Yoshino deals with his regrets until he finds a bottle stranded on the beach.
1. Introduction

"Hey, Yoshino, are you even listening to me?" I raise my gaze from my phone to look at Mahiro who was still grinning at me. I flipped Aika-chan's message closed and stuffed it back into my pocket, my face staying neutral.

"I did. And I already told you to stop inviting me to your dates."

"C'mon, today was fun, wasn't it? Better than sitting in your room at least." My eyes wandered for a moment and I thought about the date I had planned myself with Aika-chan which was now ruined thanks to a certain brother. "Besides, I just wanted to help get you a girlfriend. That's what friends do, right?"

"Since we're not friends, it should be none of your concern." It was something we always said, clarifying that we're only always together out of convenience sake but when I turned back to Mahiro, something felt off. He was smiling, but it was not his usual cocky one. No, this one was less bright, corners lower than usual and even a little sad maybe. Scarlet eyes flickered back to me for a moment before turning back to the front.

"I guess so."

* * *

I leaned across the railing and watched the ocean move in front of my eyes. The sun was setting behind the horizon, bathing everything around us in a warm orange glow. Aika was still praying by the grave behind me, which I really didn't see the reason of. What good would it do to pray after all this time?

Movement caught my ears and I turned around to greet my girlfriend. She smiled softly at me and motioned me to move. I complied.

"Why do you still insist on still coming here, Aika-chan?" I ask. She only smiles some more at me before stepping in front of me.

"Don't you think Mahiro would like to know he is remembered?"

"That guy would probably like it more if we just left him alone." I knew it was a lie and so did Aika but she didn't let it show. Instead she chuckled and walked on.

"Indeed, Mahiro would rather say _'Ah, even in death, why can't you two just leave me alone!'_ He really was odd." I allowed myself to smile for a moment but it quickly faded away again. Solemnly I turned to the ground before halting, forcing Aika to do the same.

"They still haven't found any clues, have they?"

"I'm sure the officials need time to figure it out." There was no hesitation in her voice. No, Aika never hesitated. Even back then... My hands were tightened to fists at my sides.

"It's been eight months! They aren't even doing anything anymore." A soft hand stroked my cheek while another was placed on one of my fists. I slowly relaxed them while Aika got closer to me.

"Yoshino-san, I know you're angry and frustrated but you need to be patient. There is nothing we can do right now." She pecked me on the lips while taking my hand and pulling me along. "You needn't hide your emotions, Yoshino-san. I'm certain everything will be alright." I was a lot less sure than her.

* * *

Aika and I walked along the streets holding hands, enjoying the privacy of the morning mist.

"What did you tell Mahiro, anyway?" I asked as I pulled her closer. She giggled and wrapped her arm around mine.

"That I was staying at a friend's place to study. It wasn't a complete lie." I blushed and we walked along She had previously spend the night at my house while my parents were away to study, though we got a lot less material done than intended. We were rather... preoccupied. After some time we reached the huge Fuwa mansion, still striking me as odd in the otherwise modern city even after years of coming here. Aika quickly unlocked it and entered while I followed suite. We were not in two meters before she stopped, gasping..

"Goodness, I left some of my books on the balcony before I left!" I blinked for a moment before smiling and squeezing her hand.

"I'm sure they are fine." Even when I tried to reassure her, she shook her head, brown her flying around.

"No, the mist might have made the pages all curly! I have to check! You can go ahead, but make sure not to wake Mahiro!" Before I could say another word she was already running towards the back of the house, leaving me standing alone in the cold. Still, I smiled and followed her command. I don't know if I should feel lucky or cursed to have such a bookworm as my girlfriend.

After a few moments I reached the front door and reached into my pocket for the spare key Mahiro had given me a few years ago. To my surprise when I leaned against the door, it gave away without resistance, almost tripping me. I caught myself just in time and stood straight, looking down the halls at my sides.

"Mahiro?" I called, worry settling into my stomach. In all the time I had known him, I have never found the front door unlocked, let alone open. "Mahiro?" I repeated, but there was still no answer. I cautiously took a step and neared the door in front of me. I could have looked at other places first but something told me this was a good place to start. I gave it a light push and just like the front door, it swung open with not even a noise. Inside, my eyes caught sight of the Mahiro's collapsed form, just lying on the carpet.

All the worry I previously felt sapped away, instead replaced by anger and slight embarrassment. Of course that guy was alright. There was no way someone like him couldn't handle everything. I was a fool to even think about it.

"Mahiro! What are you doing, sleeping on the-" Only when I took my first step did I notice that the floor was wet. My eyes wandered downwards until red blinded my vision, like a flood swallowing everything. I traced it back to the source only to lead back towards the figure of Mahiro.

It was as the air had been sucked out of my lungs. With stumbling feet I walked up to the blond and shook his shoulder, breath hitching.

"M-Mahiro? Come on, wake up. This isn't funny." I knew it was futile the moment I touched him, feeling the cold of his skin even through the many layers of cloth he wore. My trembling hand moved to his face, the back of the fingers stroking his cheek, once again confirming his death.

I didn't feel anything. This was a lie. Mahiro couldn't die. Lucky Mahiro, who survived so much, from street fights to being run over by a motorcycle as a kid, couldn't just die like that. He was too strong to die. This had to be a lie.

I was still sitting in the blood when Aika arrived. She just looked at the scene, hugged me and whispered it would be alright before going outside to call the police. I was still watching that peaceful face when the pulled me away and carried the corpse away, thinking that it might have looked as if he had just been sleeping if it weren't for that red flower blooming from his chest.

* * *

For once, I was walking home alone, having denied Aika when she asked to come with me. She was an incredible girlfriend and now that we didn't need to hide even more so, but there were times I just wanted to be alone. Usually after we visited the family grave.

I still remembered the last conversation I had with the blond, almost right before he was murdered. He had looked so sad when I told him we weren't friends, I can't believe those were the things I said to him. He died thinking I didn't appreciate him, thinking I didn't like him, maybe even hated him. I would have said I regretted it, but there was no sense in mourning. It wouldn't bring him back. Nothing would.

The waves crashed against the sand beside me, the rhythmic sound calming my nerves. I usually didn't visit the local beach but for some odd reason, it had struck me as the right time.

After a few minutes of walking, my feet knocked against something hard. Curious, I picked it up, finding a bottle with a weird wooden puppet and a board inside. I quickly opened it and read.

"_If you believe in magic and want your deepest wish granted, hammer a nail into the puppets head."_

I blinked. What was this? A prank? My face didn't show any expression as I stuffed it into my bag and headed home. Once there, I quickly searched for a nail and did as the board told me to. Soon after I did that, a voice echoed out of the puppet, surprising me for a moment.

"_I'm relieved someone found this. My name is Kusaribe Hakaze and I am the Magician of Genesis."_

"My name is Takigawa Yoshino. And before you explain anything, I have a question." I leaned forward, as if it was a real person sitting in front of me. In my most serious tone, I spoke, "Is there any way to bring back the dead?"

* * *

I'm sorry I've been gone so long. And now that I'm back, I only write angsty stuff. I don't understand, I'm a happy person.


	2. Climax

Footsteps resonated through the forest, one pair more energetic than the other. With a sigh I watched Aika practically leaping over trunks and hills, all the while happily chatting with Hakaze.

"So how exactly does magic work?" she asked, curious as ever. Without any hesitation the other girl answered, happily providing answers.

"_Since something can't be made from nothing, we need to sacrifice something of civilization to the Tree of Genesis. In doing so, we are granted power."_

"So it needs to be a part of civilization? A tree wouldn't do? Why?"

"_It's what our God demands. If your parent asks for an apple, you wouldn't give them a stick, would you?"_ The brunette hummed for a moment while tilting her head in thought. After some time, she nodded.

"I suppose so. But don't most gods ask for natural goods?"

"_Most yes, but everyone is different, right?"_

I was only half-listening to their conversation, instead thinking about how surreal this all felt. Two months ago, I had been like any other person, going to school with a wonderful girlfriend. Now I was traveling across the country to save a mage from an island. While I made sure to follow, memories flooded my mind.

Silence fell over us as the female voice paused. After some time, she spoke up again, a little more gentle than before.

"_...No. There's not." _All my hopes were crushed in that very moment. There was no way. I had thought that maybe,_ maybe,_ magic could bring him back. But if even magic couldn't, what hopes did I have of ever having closure? Ever tell him that he was- _"Who do you want to bring back? A lover?"_ I froze and stared at the wooden figure. I coughed up a dry laugh and shook my head.

"No, nothing like that. Just someone I knew."

"_What happened?"_ Halaze's voice was still soft, as if she were afraid of breaking me with words alone. I didn't if I should find it intrusive or kind.

"He was murdered. About a year ago. No trace of who killed him, either." Another silence.

"_...I can't help you bring him back."_

"I figured it the first time you said it," I snarked, not really caring I was talking with a girl right now. I was just tired, too tired to care. And after eight months of holding it all, could you blame me. Despite my interruption, the mage carried on.

"_But I could help you find the killer."_ My eyes snapped open again and focused on the doll. New hope filled me, my breath quickening for a moment before I managed to calm down. No, it's best not to have too high expectations. Otherwise...

"What do you mean?"

"_My magic is unable to defy the logic of the world, like the law of life and death. What I can do, however, is __protecting__ and managing __said logic__. Finding a killer would be easy for me." _Hope came back, this time to stay. Even if I could easily move on, something about the murder had struck me as odd. How could someone like Mahiro, who had survived so much and was so strong, be killed by a burglar? It didn't make sense. Maybe if I knew... If I just knew, maybe then I could have closure? So taking a deep breath, I asked,

"What do I have to do?"

"_So... That Mahiro. What kind of person was he?"_ Blinking, I looked down at the puppet hanging from my neck. I had been on the way to gather more talismans for me and Hakaze to use when she asked the question out of the blue. _"Well?"_ I sighed. She wasn't one to give up easily, after all.

"A real pain in the ass."

"_I doubt a pain in the ass alone would be enough to make you make a deal with a stranger."_ I sighed again.

"We had been together since elementary school, more out of obligation than anything else."

"_That 'obligation' must have been very important to you if you're ready to travel the world for him."_ I silently grabbed the knife from the table.

"Yoshino-san! We'll leave you behind if you don't hurry!" My attention was brought back to the present where Aika was already waiting a fair distance away from me. I sighed and quickly caught up with her. "Is something wrong?" she asked and I sighed once more.

"I still think you being here is a bad idea, Aika-chan." The brunette blinked at me for a moment before giggling.

"Well, but without me, you wouldn't have come this far, right?"

"_That's true, Yoshino. Without her plans, you would have been caught by a mage or the police a long time ago,"_ it echoed out of the puppet. A pout appeared on my face as I leaned down to it, slightly glaring.

"You two, always ganging up on me... I think you get along a bit too well."

"Come on, Yoshino-san!" Aika repeated, heading off in front of me before raising the suitcase in her hand. "We've come so far! Only a bit more and we will know who killed Mahiro. Don't you think it's a bit late to have regrets?" I looked at her before sighing like so many times before.

"You're right," I mumbled, joining her on the top of the kill she was standing on. "Just a bit more." In front of us loomed the huge Tree of Exodius, hidden beneath a barrier of magic.

Totally forgot I made some serious plot points in the first chapter already. Damn you brain!

Third and last chapter will be posted someday.


End file.
